LINDA Dano will make one of her first public appearances today since the Sept. 15 death of her husband, Frank Attardi.

It’s been a tough year for Dano, the veteran soap star (“Another World,” “One Life to Live“) who nursed Attardi through his battle with cancer – then was hit by the death of her mother nine days later.

“I don’t really believe in my heart that [Frank’s death] will ever be okay,” Dano says. “I think you just learn to live with the ‘okay’ and, for me at least, try to find things to be passionate about.”

The Brooklyn-born Attardi, a fun-loving ad executive, was diagnosed with cancer last May.

“The way he dealt with his illness was remarkable,” Dano says. “He was so positive – he sort of grabbed it by the throat and shook it. Every time he got bad news, and there was plenty of it, he would dust himself off and go right back at it.”

Dano rings the NASDQ opening bell this morning with Eric J. Hall, CEO of the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America.

This will give Dano, an outspoken proponent of early Alzheimer’s detection, the chance to help publicize Alzheimer’s Awareness month and allow her to reach out to caregivers affected by the disease that ravaged her own father in 1996.

“I don’t know why God keeps deciding He wants me to be someone’s caregiver . . . but any time I can reach out to other caregivers, and there are millions of them out there, I’ll do whatever I can,” she says.

“My ringing the bell is a way for me to say pay attention to those close to you, especially as the holidays approach,” says Dano. “Families . . . are the ones who can spot anything amiss.”